2017...Year in Review

Logan Valley - South of Prairie City

 What a year Twenty-seventeen was. There were three Team Rubicon trips (a disaster response organization whose motto is 'Disaster is Our Business, Veterans is Our Passion'), two were training into Wyoming and later Wisconsin, plus to Operation ‘Hard Hustle’ along the Texas coast after hurricane Harvey, the year was full with that alone. 

Operating a 'Case' Excavator - Fun!

Band -  Aransas Pass after Harvey

But then…you add our annual Central Oregon week, plus my annual motorcycle ride with 'Oregon ABCity Tour', around most of this the ninth largest state of the union. But why stop there? No, Karen a month in Mexico and I joined her for three weeks of that, then I continued south to Nicaragua for an amazing two week journey. That adventure had me traveling west to east and then into the northeast corner visiting the Miskitu people along the Rio Coco.

Up the 'Coco River'

(Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=nicaragua+fall+2017)

Baseball in Nicaragua

The above travels alone cover nearly 25,000 miles, but … we’re not finished yet. After three years of planning we were able to complete likely the longest motorcycle adventure that we’ll ever experience. Deserving a blog all its own (surprised that I haven’t completed it yet) we were able to put on, wait for it … Ten thousand one hundred and seventy miles! Along with dear friends, the Cavaliere’s, we traveled to the southeast into Florida, up the east coast, then into Ontario Canada and back into the U.S. ending the ride in our own Newport, Oregon.

Prairie City - My Favorite Diner

The above ‘Coast to Coast’ trip included a few delays and detours, non greater than the death of one of Karen’s sisters. With this we found ourselves changing our itinerary while in the Black Hills and making haste home along Interstate 90 and 84. Arriving home on a Saturday morning we flew out that evening for brief five days of encouragement to family and friends in New England. Upon our return to Oregon we immediately packed our bags, picked up our loyal riding partners and finished what we started on May 5th. So on July 1st, 2017, again after 10,170 miles, we made history…at least for ourselves, completing what was mostly quite the experience.

Riding through Custer State Park

When we add the above numbers along with several smaller sundry trips around the state, we traveled what would be nearly two times around this globe of ours. I’m sure for some, that’s nothing unusual, for us, I don’t imagine that they’ll be another year like it for us.

-- End of a 10,170 Mile Ride --

So here we find ourselves, already past the 2017 Christmas holidays, and into another year ... what a FULL year 2017 was. And today…I haven’t even stepped outside. Feels weird, but then again…perhaps it’s OK to just take a break.

What the above blog leaves out are the lives that we’ve been touched by and those that we’ve been so privileged to touch this past year. That along with the protection and provision of our great Creator and Redeemer God, we will forever be filled by so many recurring memories that this year has provided.